


Take it from an old man, the days don't stretch any longer

by xsticknoodlesx



Series: To Err Is Human (DPD Family) [16]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: And His Past Death, Birthday, Birthday Presents, Connor & Upgraded Connor | RK900 are Siblings, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hank Anderson Deserves Happiness, Happy Ending, Mentions of Cole Anderson, Mentions of Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:53:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26583940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xsticknoodlesx/pseuds/xsticknoodlesx
Summary: It's Hank's birthday and Connor and Nines have something special planned for him. Hank doesn't want to celebrate with them and when they find out why an avalanche of negative feelings is set loose on all sides.*Can be read as a stand-alone*
Relationships: Connor & Upgraded Connor | RK900, Hank Anderson & Connor, Hank Anderson & Connor & Upgraded Connor | RK900, Hank Anderson & Upgraded Connor | RK900
Series: To Err Is Human (DPD Family) [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1336222
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	Take it from an old man, the days don't stretch any longer

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Take it from an old man" from the musical Waitress. I love this song and it always reminds me of Hank for some reason, especially the lyrics I chose for the title.
> 
>  **Warnings:** This discusses Cole and touches on Hank's grief. But it doesn't go too much into depth.
> 
> Enjoy ^^

Hank was awoken by the sound of commotion coming from the kitchen. He took a few moments to contemplate whether or not he wanted to get up this early on his birthday to see what his two weird android sons were up to now. But the worry that it might be Sumo getting into something he wasn’t supposed to eat outweighed his initial hesitation. He got up, putting an old cardigan on to ward of the early autumn breeze as he patted down the hallway to the kitchen.

There he found Sumo sitting in the living room adjoined to it, watching the two androids in abject confusion. And Hank stopped in his tracks and did the same. Both androids were covered in flour and so was the counter, the floor and the utensils. When Hank cleared his throat, they both turned around.

“Dad!” Connor exclaimed in surprise. “Why are you up already?”

Hank gestured toward the mess. “You expect me to not hear this? What is going on?”

“We wanted to make you pancakes for breakfast.” Nines whispered, seemingly upset by their failure. “But Connor couldn’t get the flour bag to open, so I wanted to help and I sort of ripped it from his hands and then spilt it everywhere. I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry, too. We wanted you to have a nice breakfast and now you have such a mess here.” Connor sighed softly.

Hank looked at them for a second before sighing, knowing that he would never be able to be mad at his sons. “It’s alright. It’s the thought that counts.”

Connor perked up at that. “Can we do something else for you? How about we invite you to have breakfast with us? We could go have pancakes or eat at the diner downtown, you know that one that you like so much.”

“You really don’t-”

“Yes, that’s a great idea!” Nines noded quickly. 

“I don’t really like celebrating my birthday that much.” Hank explained.

“We won’t celebrate it too much but a nice breakfast is a good idea, though.” Connor smiled. “Can we invite you?”

“Alright.” Hank sighed. “You can. Just take a shower first and let me get ready.”

“Happy Birthday, Dad!” Connor said and then approached Hank to hug him tightly.

The man squirmed in his grip. “You’re getting flour all over me!”

“Oh, sorry.”

Nines watched them and quickly embraced Hank as well. “Happy Birthday, Dad.”

Hank sighed in defeat and then wrapped his arms around them. “Yeah, yeah, that’s enough. Get ready, you two.”

“Alright.”

\---

“We could go to the movies, too, if you’d like that.”

“No, I-”

Connor interrupted. “Or swimming.”

Nines nodded. “Or watch a movie at home.”

“Or invite friends over.” 

“No!” Hank exclaimed, trying to cut through to them. “No, I don’t want any of that.”

“Then what do you want to do?” Nines looked back at him, putting down his Thirium milkshake. “It’s your birthday after all.”

Connor nodded. “We should do something fun.”

“I don’t want to do anything special, okay?” Hank sighed. “Going out for breakfast was only because you kept begging me.”

“But we-”

“Listen, when Cole was still alive I used to celebrate with him. It was kind of a tradition, just father-son time. We’d go to the park and play, then go home and watch a movie while eating pizza. It wasn’t anything spectacular but it was special to me. But my son is dead and I really don’t want to- I just don’t want to celebrate. Just drop it, please.” Hank explained quietly. “Okay?”

Nines nodded and looked down at the table. “Of course. I’m sorry we brought it up. Had we known, we wouldn’t have tried to get you to celebrate.”

Connor heaved a sigh and nodded. “You don’t want to continue that tradition with us, do you?”

The RK900’s LED flared red at his brother’s question and he kicked Connor under the table, earning himself a glare. Hank didn’t get angry or sad though. He just shook his head and put his cutlery down.

“No, it was a father-son thing.” Hank sighed. 

Connor swallowed against the lump in his throat and started eating the last of his Thirium based waffles. He knew he shouldn’t feel this sad about Hank’s rejection but it still stung, especially the choice of words. Connor had been under the impression that he and Nines were Hank’s sons. Of course, he knew that they could never ever replace Cole but he had hoped that perhaps Hank saw Nines and him as sons, as well. But apparently, that wasn’t the case. Nines eyed his brother, feeling a little upset as well. But unlike Connor, he was great at hiding any negative feelings.

“Okay, boys, let’s head home.”

\---

Nines watched in worry as his brother sat down on their shared bed. His face scrunched up in concern as Connor then proceeded to flop down on his side. Swallowing, Nines quickly waved off Hank’s proclamation that he was taking Sumo for a walk before sitting down on the bed.

“Brother, are you alright?”

Connor heaved a sigh, pushing his feelings down as to not worry his little brother. “A little disappointed is all.”

“But you seem sad.” Nine insisted. “Really, I- Connor, if Hank’s words upset you, it’s alright to admit it to me. I-”

“Of course they upset me!” Connor exclaimed as he sat up, sighing when Nines flinched lightly at his raised voice. “I’m sorry for- I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, brother.”

“I never wanted to replace Cole, you must know that.” Connor whispered and looked away when he saw Nines nod. “Then isn’t it horrible for me to be sad about Hank not really seeing us as sons of the same degree as biological ones?”

Nines’ LED flared yellow at that. He wasn’t used to being the one doing the comforting. Connor had always been a safe haven for him, always there and always willing to help him with his feelings. But now, he had to help his brother. “It’s not. I mean- it was you who told me that feeling your emotions doesn’t make you selfish or horrible! You love Hank and you want to spend time with him, see him happy and know that he sees you as a family member.”

Connor looked up at that, a few stray tears running down his cheeks. “Nines, I- I don’t know what to do. Hank has always been- he’s just- when I first became a deviant, he helped me figure out emotions, feelings and all the things that came with being human. And no matter- it didn’t matter how much I messed up, Hank was there, even though he was having a hard time himself. And- and now I’m being so ungrateful.”

Nines bit his lip at his brother’s distress, putting an arm around him. His worries about his comfort being too stiff or unnatural were washed away when Connor all but melted into his embrace, crying quietly. “You’re not ungrateful.”

“I am!”

“You’re not.” Nines whispered. “You were there for Hank, too. I wasn’t around at the time but you got him through his alcohol problems, helped him get help and you- you just overall brightened up his life. And you helped me, too. And Gavin and Tina and everyone else. Again, wasn’t it you who said that after giving so much, you’re allowed to take something back.”

“But I feel so horrible about wanting to have some sort of ritual with him, too.” Connor sighed, sniffling.

Nines nodded along to his words and rubbed his arm. “Con, it’s not a bad thing to want that. But don’t you think we have similar rituals and things we do with Hank? I mean we try to always have dinner together when we can. We take Sumo on walks all the time. And we annoy Gavin together.”

Connor chuckled at that, weakly and through tears, but it was a win in Nines’ book. “I suppose you’re right. But I’d never want to replace Cole, you know that right?”

“Of course.” Nines nodded, leaning his head against Connor’s. “Me, neither. But I understand how you feel. Hearing Hank say that it is a father-son thing indirectly implies that we are not in that sort of relationship with him. It saddened me, too.”

“And here you are comforting me.” Connor exclaimed in desperation, turning around to embrace Nines. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. Although I am unused to comforting you, I enjoy being able to make you feel better. Forgive me if I am not too good at doing it, though.”

“You helped me a lot.” Connor smiled. “Thank you.”

“Perhaps we can give Hank his present later on and simply spend a normal evening with him. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind that.”

“If it is our presence that bothers him, he might.”

“Oh fuck!”

Connor winced at the voice from the doorway and Nines jumped a little, turning instinctively to shield his brother. They both relaxed when they saw Hank in the doorway, soaked from the rain, Sumo at his heel.

“You’re back already.” Nines stated although it was obvious.

“It started to rain.” Hank waved Nines off and approached them, crouching down in front of Connor. “Do you think I don’t see you as a son?”

“Oh no, don’t feel bad!” Connor exclaimed, shaking his head. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough.”

Connor immediately jumped up and ran over to Hank, waving his hands appeasingly. “It’s not what you think! I wouldn’t ever hold it against you that you don’t feel comfortable with us trying to create new traditions. You have memories with Cole and we wouldn’t ever want to intrude on them. We never have to celebrate your birthday or Christmas or Halloween or anything if it is a painful reminder of your son.”

Hank grabbed Connor by the arms and shook his head, eyeing him and Nines behind him. “Connor, Nines, you two need to take a breather, okay? You’re stressing yourselves out, your mood rings are blaring red and honestly, you both look ready to cry your eyes out.”

“But you’re-“ Nines swallowed and sighed. “We don’t want you to be sad. And we don’t want to replace Cole, so we-”

“You’re not replacing anything. We’ve had this discussion before.” Hank said sternly. “Me caring for you two and loving you doesn’t erase any of the love I have for Cole.”

“I guess.” Connor whispered.

“For a smart prototype android, you’re pretty dumb.” Hank shook his head. “I love both of you, okay? And I can still love Cole, even if I love you. Love isn’t finite, you know?”

“But- but the tradition you had was special.” 

“We can make a new one.” Hank nodded, doing his best to smile at them and opened his arms. “Now come here before you cry, please.”

Connor was quick to embrace Hank, holding onto him and Nines slowly moved to hug him, as well. Hank wrapped his arms around them.

“You’re my dumb android sons and I love you two.”

“I love you too, dad.” Connor whispered quietly.

“Me, too.” Nines nodded against Hank’s shoulder. “Are you sure you’re fine?”

Hank was quiet for a few seconds before he nodded. “Of course.”

\---

Hank sighed softly as he took the little package from Connor and Nines. The two androids watched anxiously as he unpacked it. 

“We weren’t sure what to get you. I was unsure of whether or not you’d enjoy a personalised gift or something else, so we got you multiple things.” Connor whispered. “I hope you like at least one of these things.”

“I must say it may seem really chaotic that we got you tickets for the next hockey game of Detroit against Toronto, a keychain with a photo of us in it and a dad mug.” Nines mumbled out, gesturing toward the package. “But we did get some cake for you yesterday.”

“Connor, Nines, relax. I love them.” Hank said with a small smile, holding the keychain up and letting it turn around. “You put- is that a picture of Cole and I?”

“And Sumo.” Connor pointed out weakly. “One of the plastic frames’ sides contains a photo of Nines, you and I. The other side has a photo or you with Cole and Sumo.”

“Is this uncalled for?” Nines asked in a slight panic. “I wouldn’t know and-”

“It’s lovely.” Hank said, still staring down at the photograph. “It’s- that was the day we went to that trashy- that amusement park. It’s trashy now but back in the day, it was great. Cole loved the pirate cove. But he was- the big rollercoaster scared him so much and he was so upset because he wanted to ride it. I didn’t- I hate rollercoasters but I went on it with him. We took that picture we went on that waterslide ride. I was soaked and Cole- well, he thought that was hilarious. We had someone watch Sumo but he got soaked, too. I was drenched, the car smelled like wet dog for weeks but Cole had so much fun.”

It was Connor that eventually spoke up. “Dad, you’re crying. I thought it was a good memory?”

“It is.” Hank sniffled, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand. “It makes me miss him even more. It’s weird but human emotions are weird.”

“It’s not.” Nines assured. “When Gavin talks about his dad, he tells me about happy things and well, then he gets sad because his father is dead. It’s not weird.”

“I still have the fucking macaroni photo frame he made me for the last birthday we celebrated together before- well, before the accident.”

“I’ve seen it.” Connor whispered, leaning against Hank’s side in an attempt to comfort him. “It’s lovely. Cole was really talented.”

“He was so good at everything.” Hank sobbed quietly. “But his best quality was always how caring and compassionate he was. I could have seen him as a doctor or an officer or someone else that cares for people.”

“I bet he wanted to become a police officer.” Connor mused, watching as Nines leaned his head against Hank’s shoulder.

“Yeah, of course.” Hank gave a wet little laugh. “Just like his old man.”

“He really looked up to you, didn’t he?”

“Yes.” Hank said before he started sobbing again. “Fuck, he didn’t deserve this. He- he should be here now, showing off the picture he drew for me, annoying- annoying Sumo and just- just being there.”

Nines opened his mouth to say something before he realised he wasn’t sure what to say and he looked at Connor. When he saw his brother being at a loss, too, he leaned in to embrace Hank. “Hank, can we do anything to help?”

Connor nodded and wrapped his arms around Hank’s middle. “Say the word and we’ll do it, as long as it helps.”

Hank shook his head and leaned back to wrap an arm around each of the androids, holding them close. “Just don’t leave.”

“We would never.” Connor assured him.

“We are equipped with quantic batteries that make us autonomous for 173 years.”

“You’re such a know-it-all.” Hank wiped his eyes. “Fuck, I really started crying, huh?”

Nines quickly shook his head. “It’s fine, it’s not bad. I mean, you’ve seen us cry before, as well. You tell us it’s okay to cry, so isn’t it okay for you, too?”

“But I’m supposed to take care of you.”

“Your feelings are valid and should be felt.” Connor insisted. “Don’t be sad, dad.”

“I’m doing alright at the moment, you know?” Hank looked at the table in front of him. “You two have really helped.”

“We did?” Nines asked in genuine surprise. “I mean, I know Connor helped you get help but are we still helping?”

“Of course.” Hank looked up and sighed. “The days don’t stretch any longer.”

Connor smiled at that, warm and genuine as he hugged Hank even tighter. Nines seemed a bit reluctant but eventually held onto Hank, too, smiling softly. Hank’s arms tightened around the two of them just a little bit as he sighed softly and a small smile grazed his lips. The three of them stayed like that for a few minutes until Hank spoke up again, obviously trying to change the subject to something less depressing.

“Now how about that cake you mentioned?”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed it as much as you could with the topic ^^
> 
> The next one will be lighthearted and Halloween fun, I promise. I'll get it done as soon as I can. But I watched Camp Cretaceous on Netflix and since there is not really any content, yet, I want to make some and fix what happened in Episde 8! BUt don't worry I'll soon update this series, too, because I have something special panned for the Christmas one. And I'll finish up the reader insert soon and pump our another one (pregnancy and Connor) and another one (secret relationship and Connor). I'm rambling, huh? anyways, if you ever want a specific topic touched in this series or as an insert or whatever, tell me and I'd be happy to do it ^^
> 
> See you ^^


End file.
